Australian government funds preimplantation genetic testing

Australian families who carry serious genetic, mitochondrial or chromosomal disorders are now able to reclaim the cost of preimplantation genetic testing (PGT), as well as IVF.

PGT allows families affected by genetic conditions to select unaffected embryos during IVF treatment, meaning they can be confident they are not passing the condition on to their children.

'This change will give real, practical support to individuals and couples on their fertility journey,' said health minister Greg Hunt.

The cost of PGT will be reclaimable in the form of rebates from the public health system known as Medicare. Medicare rebates are already available for IVF cycles and other fertility treatments such as intrauterine insemination and ICSI.

The Australian government has not released a set list of conditions that can be tested for but said that 'Medicare funding will support individuals or couples who carry a risk of passing on a serious genetic or chromosomal disorder to their child for which there is no cure and which causes a severe limitation on the quality of life… Types of genetic disorders able to be tested include, but are not limited to, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, spinal muscular atrophy, fragile X, neurofibromatosis, and Huntington's disease.'

Thanks to the provision of IVF services through Medicare, 15,000 babies are born from IVF in Australia every year, accounting for almost five percent of all live births (see BioNews 1083).

Australia already has a pilot carrier screening programme 'Mackenzie's Mission', named after Mackenzie Casella who died from monogenic condition spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) aged seven months. Carrier screening can help couples understand if they are at risk of having children affected by genetic conditions, but those who found out their children might be affected could only access PGT if they were able to pay privately, costing approximately AU$3000-$4000 per IVF cycle.

'The Medicare funding will support and give hope for many Australian families who are at risk of passing on a severe genetic or chromosomal disorder to their child,' Isabel Karpin, professor of law health justice at the University of Technology Sydney told BioNews. 'The decision to fund PGT is ultimately going to make it more accessible to those who previously could not afford the service.'